Monday, February 29, 2016

Congressman Robert Hurt Announces Winner Of The Congressional App Challenge

Monday, February 29, 2016

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Robert Hurt (R-Virginia) today announced the winner of the second annual Congressional App Challenge for Virginia's Fifth District. 

The Congressional App Challenge was designed to engage student creativity and encourage their participation in STEM education fields. A team of Franklin County High School students -- Matthew Brosinski, Ryan Murphy, Devin McCulley under the guidance of their teacher, Dr. William Schmachtenberg – won this year's App Challenge. Their app, VR Atom History Explorer, places users in a virtual reality in which they learn about atoms and their history.  Honorable mentions were also awarded to Elisha Nicholas, Shannon Clarke, Michael Snipes, and Jake Mills of Fluvanna County High School for their app, Mathstrava, and Jesse Du and Henry Kwon of Albemarle High School for their app, Charity Angel.

"We're really happy to see the work we put into it paid off!" said Matthew Brosinski, upon winning the App Challenge.  "Being able to get the app out on time and see it do so well has been a huge honor we're really thankful for.  Technology we already have can be used in ways we don't typically expect. I think there's a lot of innovation to be done in this area, and I think our app is a good example of that."

Congressman Hurt added, "All of the students' submissions required tremendous technical skill and imagination, and we were inspired and impressed by all of these young people's abilities.  Congratulations to Matt, Ryan, and Devin for their remarkable display of software application knowledge and creativity and to our two honorable mention teams who also demonstrated a deep understanding of app development and ingenuity.  We must continue to foster the growth of the STEM education fields, because these fields are increasingly important as our young people prepare for college and enter the workforce."